Finally! Today, I get rid of this cursed car! Yes, it carried me to places public transportation does not go. Yes, it allowed me to travel Tuscany back roads I would not have seen. Yes, it ran great and gave me no mechanical problems (other than scraping it against a low rock wall and scratching the paint). But, driving a car is not traveling in another country. It is traveling shielded behind steel and glass, insulated from everyone and everything. The windshield is like a big TV screen, the driver’s seat like a recliner from a living room. I could experience the same thing in my house in Toledo by watching a video taken by someone driving down the roads. Get me out of this car! Put me on foot or a bike where I can feel the temperature of the air, smell the subtle odors on the wind, feel it on my skin. Let me stop and look in any direction at anytime. In the car, my eyes are glued to the road, my hands to the steering wheel, my feet to the pedals. I might as well be chained to this infernal thing. Granted, it whisked me to the “sites”, but the sites are not the experience. The journey is the experience, and chained to this car by hands, eyes and feet I miss the journey. I am ready to be set free.
We were up at 5:30 am this morning, and out the door by 6:50 am, headed for Rome via the coast. The quickest way to the airport and the drop off for our Europcar Rental is inland and down highway A3, but driving the freeway in a foreign country is not a new experience. I might as well be on I-5. We chose to drive the back roads to the west coast, then travel along the Mediterranean, skipping the major highways as much as possible. This route added about half an hour to our trip. Although I could only glance at the territory we traversed, chained to the wheel, Sally got a good view through her TV Screen/Car window of the terrain, vegetation, architecture and cities as we zoomed by.
We rolled into the Leonardo di Vinci airport about 9:45 am, missed the correct turnoff to our rental agency and looped around again, grabbing the correct turnoff on the second pass. Up on the 4th floor we found Europcar and pulled into a parking stall. We emptied the car, then stood to the side while the inspector looked over the car and found my scratches on the passenger door. We signed the correct paper work admitting to the deed. I had called our VISA card company the day before and found what documentation they needed to cover the damage. I went through the list with the rental car agent, a nice young Italian man in his early 30’s, and gathered all the proper documents. With that, I was rid of the beast and back to traveling the way I like best, on my feet.
Instead of taking the train (€13 each) from the airport to Termini station in Rome, we decided to try the bus (€4.50 each). We found the ticket agents, found the bus and were soon seated in comfy seats with nice air conditioning. We had to wait about 15 minutes for the bus to depart. The ride was about 35-40 minutes, much longer than the train as we wove through Rome traffic to Termini station, but I was free to look out the windows or down at my phone for as long as I wanted with my eyes, place my feet anywhere I wanted and hold Sally’s hand-freedom not granted to the driver of a car.
It was about a 20 minute walk through the streets of Rome, dragging Sally’s suitcase, my pack on my back in the 85º noon heat, but it felt good. We arrived on the street of our AirB&B. A woman was talking on the phone. I started to search my phone to find the exact address of our place when the woman ended her call and asked if I was Jeff. I said Jeff was not coming, but I was his dad and we were here to stay in the place. Although her English was a little rough, I think she understood when we explained Jeff was in Mannheim visiting the groom-to-be (Joel) in the hospital recovering from a terrible motorcycle accident.
She showed us our apartment. Wonderful. A large room and 4 tiny rooms connected by a single hall. It had everything we needed. Kitchen, full bath, fridge, a comfy bed and air conditioning. We made ourselves comfortable, too comfortable. We took showers to clean off the sweat, crawled into bed and took a two hour nap.
Pat Caldwell texted us about quarter to five, asking if we wanted to joint them, the Freeman's and Jerry Boileau for dinner. We said sure, when and where. About 5:30 pm Pat texted us again to let us know Kathy Freeman had made reservations at a rather expensive restaurant and would expand the number on the reservation if we wanted to join. Thank you Pat. She provided a elegant path for us to back out of a meal that was beyond our budget. We declined, but agreed to meet them after dinner for a walk.
Jeff had texted us from Germany, giving us an update on Joel. He was doing well, considering. He was approaching two weeks in the hospital. They had removed an intravenous pain killer delivery system the day before, and the pain in his leg and especially his foot was ramping up again. But, his double vision was lessening and he was in good spirits, enjoying having Jeff there. The circulation in the injured foot seemed good, except for his big toe, which was showing signs of restricted blood flow, turning colors and withering. It is expected they will amputate it in the coming days.
We headed to the wine bar we had enjoyed 6 weeks ago when originally in Rome. They offer about 10 different cold salads in a buffet, €3 a plate, plus a glass of wine for €3. We had a wonderfully tasty and filling meal.
Afterwards, we walked down toward the Forum, listened to a accordion playing street musician that was exceptional, then strolled up Via del Corso, looking in the shops before turning off toward Trevi fountain. We were surprised to see that all the merchandise is the windows had changed. All the summer clothing was gone, and the fall fashions were on display with slogans like, “Fall is Blooming”. Seemed a little premature as the first day of summer was 3 days ago.
Near Trevi fountain we found shops that had some of the items we were seeking to bring home to friends. We didn’t buy any. We still have two days at the beach in Anzio, Monday and Tuesday nights. We didn’t want to buy a bunch of stuff, then haul it there and back. Our last night in Italy is Wednesday, and we spend it in Rome. We will buy the stuff Wednesday afternoon. That way we only have to drag it to the airport, throw it on a plane, and pick it up in Vancouver BC on our return trip home.
We got a text from Ross that their meal was done and would we like to meet. We agreed on Trevi fountain, under the Farmacia sign. And appropriate sign for Bill. We continued to look in the shops a bit more, then wandered to the piazza in front of the Trevi Fountain and found Bill, Pat, Ross and Crystal hanging out under the sign.
We strolled to the Spanish steps through the crowd packed streets, at 10:30 pm. At the steps, Ross and Crystal parted company for the river front music scene and then home. We visited with the Caldwells a bit more, then escorted them to the Spanish Steps Metro Station and bid them goodnight. We strolled back to Trevi Fountain, then up to our room a few blocks away where we rested a few minutes before calling it a day and climbing into bed.
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